I would assume that all ATCO's would have to be competent to a certain degree with understanding and delivering the code??
You would assume incorrectly! You will have to know what it is, but you won't have to be able to remember, decode or transmit it.
I'm only asking as my PPL R/T included the understanding of the code with regards to dialing up VOR and listening in to see if that you are receiving a signal and that it is the correct Nav Aid. If at PPL level I am to learn this, I would expect an ATCO to be able to……
Nope. Pilots ident navaids, not ATCOs.
If you want something to learn in advance of hitting the College, aircraft recognition is a good one to be up to speed on. Also, a good skill to have is being able to recognise a heading. Try drawing arrows at random and guessing the heading they represent in degrees, and then check them with a protractor. It's a skill you'll have to learn anyway, and having a good grasp of it will help you on the radar courses, if you do them. If you can correctly (and quickly) identify a heading to within 5 degrees, you'll be ahead in the game. Good luck!
